


She Turns On The Light

by GotTheSilver



Category: My So-Called Life
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shop, Crush, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-15
Updated: 2013-01-15
Packaged: 2017-11-25 13:59:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/639593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GotTheSilver/pseuds/GotTheSilver
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>So Jordan came in the shop sometimes.  That was totally fine.  It didn’t make her feel anything, whatever Rayanne said.  Angela just thinks that he - well, he looks good.  He holds his paper cup full of coffee - black, with three or four sugars - in both his hands, his sleeves over his fingers.</p>
<p>Part of <a href="http://trope-bingo.dreamwidth.org/">Trope Bingo</a>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	She Turns On The Light

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Buffalo Tom - Late At Night, for obvious reasons!
> 
> Trope: AU Coffee Shop

It wasn’t like Angela really liked Jordan Catalano, it was just - he kept coming into the shop. Where she worked. Because her parents were, like, totally insane. Angela liked coffee, sure, she liked coffee, but she liked it a normal amount. Like everyone else. Not like how her parents liked it, how her grandparents liked it. They were obsessed with it. Her grandpa had started it all, he’d bought a shop just before they adopted her mom and it apparently became popular. Angela wasn’t quite sure how it had all worked, she did know her mom and dad met at the shop. It was weird, it seemed like her whole life had been centred around the shop and yet she wasn’t sure she even had a life.

So Jordan came in the shop sometimes. That was totally fine. It didn’t make her feel anything, whatever Rayanne said. Angela just thinks that he - well, he looks good. He holds his paper cup full of coffee - black, with three or four sugars - in both his hands, his sleeves over his fingers. Sometimes she can make out the silver rings he wears, sometimes not. He just sits there and stares out the window while he drinks his coffee. When it’s raining, he has a second cup, but he never has more than that. Jordan never has any of the food, either. Maybe he can’t afford it, Angela doesn’t know.

It’s really, like, embarrassing when Jordan comes in and her dad’s in the kitchen. Because he sticks his head through the partition and looks out at Jordan and, ugh, it’s like he wants to know Jordan or something. Angela cannot handle that. Working at the shop is like having a front row seat to her worlds colliding. It’s just the worst. At least her dad doesn’t make her wear a uniform. She’d just die if he he did that.

Her dad is always asking if her friends want a part time job at the shop, Rickie is the only one who has taken him up on the offer. It’s weird, knowing that her dad knows her friends. Angela loves Rickie, but her dad knowing and liking Rickie is so strange. He keeps asking Rickie about his clothes - Angela walked in on Rickie giving her dad style advice one day. She’s not convinced her brain has recovered. Rayanne would never work here. Rayanne would never work, not unless she has to. She turns up, sometimes. Before the OD, she used to make Irish coffees and steal all the muffins. Now she pounds black coffee like it’s going out of style and picks at the food Angela’s dad brings her.

Angela is really happy that her mom hardly ever comes to the shop. It’s like, she knows it was passed down from grandpa to her mom, but her mom just doesn’t want anything to do with it. She does the financial side or something, and Angela’s dad does the day to day running. Angela isn’t sure how they made that decision. Danielle comes by the shop after school every day and hangs out in the kitchen with their dad. It’s so unfair she doesn’t have to do anything. Their dad says Danielle will start work when she starts high school, like Angela, but that’s so long away.

Jordan Catalano is coming in the door now, it’s not raining so he’ll only stay for one cup. Rayanne said she’d be coming by later, after seeing Tino. Rickie isn’t going to be in for an hour, so Angela’s all by herself. Her palms are getting sweaty and, ew, it’s just gross. Why does the human body react like this? Why hasn’t anyone fixed it? Jordan’s wearing a green sweater and it kind of matches his eyes a little. Not that Angela’s noticed Jordan’s eyes. Oh God, he’s coming over.

“Hi, what can I get you?” See, professional. Angela can be professional.

“Uh. Coffee, black,” says Jordan. He’s tapping his fingers against the counter and Angela wonders if it’s a song he’s writing. Rayanne keeps trying to get Angela to come to a Frozen Embryos show and - it’s not that she doesn’t want to. It’s like, unknown territory. She wants to go but she’s - okay, she’s scared. Kind of. Not in any real way. Just because - things happen at Frozen Embryos shows, Rayanne always tells her and Angela, she’s not sure she’s ready for that.

Angela makes the coffee almost absentmindedly. It’s almost brainless how easy it is. Like, she could do this in her sleep. It leaves her so much time in her thoughts, which makes her wonder if she overthinks. But it’s better to overthink than not overthink, right? Because that could make her shallow. Ugh, sometimes she hates herself.

Jordan takes the coffee and shoves a crumpled note at Angela, mutters “Keep the change,” at her and goes to sit in his usual spot by the window.

A few people come in after Jordan, a couple of teachers - which is just mortifying - and a family with two kids. The little boy demands a chocolate muffin and Angela gives it to him with a smile. Rayanne comes in not long after that. She slams her bag on the counter and walks into the kitchen to say hi to Angela’s dad. It’s really weird how much Rayanne likes him, Angela tries not to think about it. Rickie races in, late, and starts clearing up old coffee cups and plates.

Rayanne waves a hand in front of Angela’s face, “Stop staring at him.”

“What? I’m not. I’m just, you know, looking. Over there.”

“So you’re not looking at Jordan Catalano and thinking about how much you want to have sex with him?” Rayanne picks at the slice of apple pie she got from Angela’s dad.

“Rayanne!”

“What? I’m quiet, no one can hear me.”

“Yeah, right,” Angela rolls her eyes and glances at the partition where her dad, thankfully, has not been standing.

Rayanna starts telling her about Amber’s latest boyfriend. According to Rayanne, he’s part of a biker gang and keeps promising to take Rayanne for a ride. The way Rayanne says it makes it sound like he’s offering something more and Angela worries because she sometimes she can’t tell if Rayanne is exaggerating or not. It’s hard, ever since the OD, Rayanne takes a deeper pleasure in saying outrageous things since she can’t really do outrageous things without getting in trouble with her AA sponsor. Rayanne’s in the middle of a sentence when Jordan approaches the counter with some papers in his hands.

“Hi Jordan,” Rayanne says with a pout.

“Yeah, hey,” Jordan looks at Angela. “Listen, we’ve got these flyers for our next Embryos show. Can I, like, leave some here?”

“Oh, oh, yeah, sure. It’s no problem,” says Angela and, God, could she sound any more moronic. She wishes the lights would just fall on her and, like, have her end up in hospital or something.

“Great. If you guys aren’t doing anything, you should come,” Jordan brushes his hair back from his face. “I mean, we kind of suck, but there’ll be free beer.”

“I’m sure you guys are great,” seriously, why can’t she stop talking? Ugh.

Jordan shrugs, “We suck,” he says before he leaves.

Angela waits until he’s gone before she rests her head on the counter and groans. Her life is a freaking disaster.

“Aw, Angela, you talked to Jordan,” Rayanne strokes Angela’s hair. “Progress!”

“It was awful,” Angela mumbles into the counter.

“Rickie, come here and tell Angela that she wasn’t awful in front of Jordan.”

Rickie rests a hand on Angela’s back, “Well, she wasn’t awful. Awkward, but not awful. Besides, it’s Jordan, it’s not like he notices these things.”

“It’s so unfair,” Angela straightens up. “I notice everything, why does he not have to notice anything?”

“Because he’s a guy,” Rayanne shrugs.

“It’s true,” Rickie says. “Though Jordan is more oblivious than most.”

“Ooh, SAT word.”

“Are you trying to make me scream?” Angela whines.

Rayanne laughs, “So, you’re coming to the show, right?”

Angela bites her lip. This is different to before, this time it’s like he’s almost asking her to go, right? She glances at the kitchen and nods, “I mean, I guess my dad will let me. And if he does, my mom can’t really argue.”

“Will you let me dress you?”

“Rayanne, no.”

“Please, please, please, please? You want to look good, right? Let me dress you.”

Angela groans and nods. There’s not really any point in fighting Rayanne on this, she’ll do whatever she wants anyway. Rayanne starts talking to Rickie about outfit options and Angela tunes out. So, okay, the coffee shop isn’t exactly how she wants to be spending all her free time, but maybe it’s enough. You know, for the moment.


End file.
